Chapter 105: Buying a marriage is just like buying a slave.
When Song Jin accompanied Ji Shubai on inspection tours to various counties, she often stayed in the government office to look through case files and documents. She knew a little about the ins and outs of this.
For example, as an ordinary person, she was not eligible to own slaves, which was a privilege of the scholar-official class. In other words, she had no way to buy slaves, but there was a loophole here, which was to buy a marriage certificate.
She originally wanted to rely on this loophole to find a son-in-law for herself so that she could gain a firm foothold in the Lu family and not become a person who could not inherit the property. But now it seems that this rule is just right for Chunyun.
She bought Chunyun's marriage certificate, and Chunyun became hers. She could decide who she would marry in the future, and her parents could not interfere.
This was essentially the same as being a slave, but it was not a lowly status. If one was a man, one could still take the imperial examination, which provided convenience for Song Jin, who was not from the scholar class.
Song Jin wanted to use this method to provide Chunyun with a layer of insurance. As for the money, for a girl like Chunyun, it would only be a matter of a few taels of silver, which she could afford now.
Song Jin was about to tell Chunyun about this. Chunyun was confused and asked back with her face raised: "Aren't we wasting that money? Whether you buy it or not, I'm working for you. If you don't buy it, won't you save some money?"
"What if your parents are like Hong Xing's parents and marry you to someone you don't want to marry?"
After hearing this, Chunyun lay down on the bed, staring at the ceiling with empty eyes and said, "We are all going to get married, so who we marry is up to us?"
"If I buy it, you can have the final say."
"Really?" After hearing this, he perked up.
"Of course it's true. Whether you get married or work in the kitchen with me in the future, if you have the ability, maybe you can open your own store like me."
Chunyun became happy when she heard this. After saying "OK", the two of them lay on the bed and discussed what to do about this matter.
One of Song Jin's requests was not to tell her father, in case her father intervened. She would have the word "filial piety" on her head and might not be able to win over her father in the future.
Chunyun agreed.
The two men agreed that in addition to the buyer himself and Chunyun who was being sold, they also needed a middleman and a matchmaker.
The middleman Song Jin thought it over and went to find Arong, and then asked Arong to find someone else. When the deed was signed and sealed, the procedures would be complete.
The next day, Song Jin pulled A Rong to a corner and told him his plan. A Rong didn't say anything, but just said that he would find a matchmaker when he had time, and then they would go to Chunyun's parents to get things done.
Song Jin agreed.
About two days later, Arong said that he had found the person, and that an older brother who lived next door to him could act as a matchmaker and help sign the contract.
Song Jin didn't want to wait a moment, so she gathered everyone together, found some free time, and took them out. She only told her father that she was going to do some work but didn't say what she was going to do, which caused her father to nag her.
A group of four went to Chunyun's house.
It is called Chunyun's house, but it is actually a rammed earth house with a square yard surrounded by bamboo fences. They used to be farmers, but when their land was bought by the Bai family, they became tenant farmers of the Bai family. Later, due to lack of money, they simply sold themselves and became slaves of the Bai family, but they still farmed here.
Chunyun was born here, and later was taken to the Bai family as a slave. It was also in the Bai family that she met Mancao. One day, she fed Song Jin, who had traveled through time and space, a mouthful of dry steamed bun. Today, Song Jin has decided to buy Chunyun so that he can participate in all decisions about her future.
Several people met Chunyun's mother at Chunyun's home, a woman who was making a fire and cooking, waiting for her husband to come back for lunch.
She was wearing a khaki ramie dress that was patched so many times that the original color was almost invisible. She had a half-worn green scarf wrapped around her head, which made her face look even more sallow.
"mother--"
Chunyun was happy and ran over happily to hug the woman's waist.
"Why are you back?" The woman was not as happy as expected, but instead seemed a little sad.
"Mom, Sister Mancao brought me back to see you."
The woman looked up at Song Jin, then looked at the two people who came with her, and a trace of panic appeared on her face.
"What trouble did Chunyun get into?"
Song Jin smiled and said, "No, Chunyun is fine. I came here today to discuss a business with Chunyun's father. I wonder if he is here?"
When the woman heard about discussing business, she became even more embarrassed. Song Jin then told them to wait at home while she went to the field to call Chunyun's father back so that they could discuss the matter.
The woman asked a few people to sit in the main room, gave each of them a bowl of water, and then asked Chunyun to stay at home to look for someone while she went to the field to look for someone.
Chunyun's father was a tanned man with a square corrugated hat on his head and a sleeveless coarse cloth shirt on his upper body. The uneven skin color on his arms could be seen, as if the skin had been sunburned.
His waist was tied with a cloth belt, and his trouser legs were rolled up high, revealing his calves covered with water, as if he had just washed in the river, and he was wearing a pair of straw sandals on his feet.
When the man walked into the room, he seemed to bring a wave of heat with him. The marks left by the sun on his body, with their scorching temperature, followed the man into the room, and everyone felt even hotter.
Those eyes were bright. They scanned the hall and landed on Song Jin's face. "What do you want to see me for?"
He put down the hoe on his shoulder, took the bowl of water handed to him by the woman, and drank it in big gulps.
"I want to buy Chunyun." Song Jin went straight to the point.
The old man was not surprised, he just asked: "What are you going to buy it for?"
"Helping in the kitchen."
"It's here now, and I didn't ask you for any money."
Song Jin chuckled, realizing that he might hit a snag, and became more spirited.
"Whether you want the money or not is one thing, but now I'm going to put the money in your hands, it depends on whether you want it or not."
No one can resist money. Even if it is one's own daughter, the price is clearly marked in the Ming Dynasty.
The old man sat down and asked, "How much?"
"Four ounces of silver."
After she quoted the price, she noticed that Chunyun's father paused and did not immediately reject her as he had just done, so she knew that there was hope for this matter.
"Why did you buy her? Isn't it of the same use now?"
Song Jin said calmly, "Let's put it another way. I used her, but I also provided her with food, clothing, shelter and transportation. It's better to say that I was raising her for you than to say that I was using her. She belongs to me now, but in two years, when she is old enough to get married, you will take the betrothal money and take her away to get married. Where can I seek justice?"
"You volunteered to do this, didn't you? You said you were willing to take her with you, and we didn't want you to take her away from the Bai family."
This was not the first time Song Jin had heard someone say this, and he was no longer surprised. At this moment, he just calmly said to Chunyun: "Chunyun, go play outside the yard for a while and come back later."
Chunyun looked up at her mother, and only went out after seeing her mother nod.
After the people left, Song Jin continued, "I volunteered to take her with me, provide her with food and drink, and if I am willing, I will be happy to find her a good marriage in the future. It is better than planting rice and harvesting rice with you in the fields."
"I treat her well, so I have to repay you. If you can take her away at any time, what do I want? For my own money, or for her to warm my bed in the hot summer nights?"
The old man muttered, "This has nothing to do with me. I didn't force you. If you don't bring her out, she's fine at the Bai family."
Song Jin sneered, "In my hands, she will be even better in the future. Let me be frank, I am here today to propose marriage, I want to buy Chunyun, from now on she will be my family's, in the future marriage will be decided by me, of course, I will also provide for her."
"Isn't this buying a slave?"
"Yes, I am buying a slave, but in public and behind others' backs, I am here to propose marriage."
"Your Lu family doesn't have any men, you can order her around for two years, and then do whatever you want with her."
Song Jin was furious. The so-called two years of service meant that she would use Chunyun for two years and raise her for two years. What she said was that she would wait until Chunyun was fourteen years old, which was the age for marriage. Then she would bring her home and directly receive the betrothal fee to marry her off.
As for why not to buy it now, it is simply because there is no comparison. If I raise it for another two years, when the child is older, the price can be higher.
Song Jin suppressed his temper, leaned on the old chair, and asked back: "Do you know how Chunyun left the Bai family?"
"Didn't you bring it?"
Song Jin smiled and said, "Yes, I was the one who brought them. We conspired together to murder the Tongpan in the government office. The Tongpan was angry and asked the Bai family to compensate us. He wanted to torture us to vent his anger. Fortunately, I have a deep friendship with the Tongzhi, and he came forward to help me, so we were able to get away."
When Song Jin said this, he stared at the old man with a forced smile, letting him guess the meaning behind it.
She has connections in the government.
"That's because you are awesome. We farmers don't have that ability."
Song Jin said unhappily, "You are now a family slave, not a farmer. When you arrange a marriage for Chunyun in the future, will you marry from the family in the east of the village to the family in the west of the village? But if you stay with me, I will ask the Tongzhi to keep an eye on you for me. In the future, you will be proud to marry someone who eats government food."
Chunyun's father stammered, looked up at Chunyun squatting at the gate of the courtyard and looking around, and couldn't help but echoing Song Jin's words in his mind: "Marry a government employee in the future..."
"Okay, if you want to buy it, go ahead and buy it. Five taels of silver. In the future, Chunyun will remember your kindness, and you will certainly benefit from it."
"Three taels of silver."
Song Jin hated people who were pushing him too far, but Chunyun's father was not happy: "You just said four taels, why are you lowering the price now?"
"I didn't waste so much time talking just now, and it delayed my business."
"Four ounces."
"Three taels and five cents."
"...This old man Lu only grows crooked trees."
The few of them did not hesitate. Song Jin immediately took out the marriage certificate that Arong had written in advance and asked the old man to sign it.
Although the old man was illiterate, he was shrewd. He was afraid that he would be cheated if he signed the document without knowing how to read, so he took a few people to the village to find a doorman and asked the man to read it to him. The money was paid by Song Jin.
Song Jin agreed.
Fortunately, the gatekeeper was not far away, and they arrived soon after a quick walk. Song Jin handed over the deed, and the gatekeeper read:
"A marriage certificate was issued. Yu Yunsheng, a resident of Wudu, is now short of food. He and his wife have discussed and decided to sell their daughter, Yu Chunyun, to the owner of the house, Lu Cai, as a servant on March 18, the year of Wuchen, at the time of Si. The matchmaker agreed to sell her to the owner, Lu Cai, as a servant. The three parties agreed to give her a dowry of three taels and five cents of silver. The silver was collected on the same day. When the daughter grows up, she will marry the owner of the house, and her descendants will always be at the disposal of the owner and will not have any other thoughts. If there are any such circumstances, they will obey the owner and seek justice. In case there is no evidence in the future, this marriage certificate was issued for record. May she live a long and prosperous life, and may the marriage certificate bring good luck. On August 10, the eighth year of Wanli, the marriage certificate was issued by Yu Yunsheng, the matchmaker was Li Ying, and the matchmaker was Chen Jiarong." [1]
This deed was written by Song Jin based on her memory of reading the case files after discussing with A Rong. The name of the head of the family, Lu Cai, was also decided after the two of them discussed it, because Song Jin is not qualified to be the head of the family at present, and must do things under her father's name. This is why Song Jin had to take her father with her to get rid of her citizenship.
In this era, it is difficult for single women to survive independently, and they must find a man to rely on in order to get things done.
The gentleman finished reading and put the deed forward: "Here, that's all. Three coppers."
Chunyun's father held the paper and muttered, "Selling a daughter for lack of food, how ugly it is."
"Then give me a reason?" Mr. Monkan was not in a good mood: "What reason is there for not selling it? You say it is and it is not?"
Chunyun's father finally stopped talking and accepted the silver that Song Jin handed over.
The silver was good, white and shiny, and it was obvious that it was cut from a whole piece of silver. His mood improved immediately, and he no longer cared about why he sold his daughter. He obediently pressed his handprint on the designated position.
After everyone signed and sealed, the deal was complete. Song Jin paid Mr. Menguan three copper coins, put away the deed, and took Chunyun with him to go back to the city with everyone else.
Just after taking a few steps, Song Jin turned back alone and told Chunyun's father: "It's good for us to know what happened today. Don't tell my father. If my father knows that I have Chunyun's marriage certificate, he will make plans. Then you can forget about your daughter's job."
The old man smiled flatteringly and said, "I understand, I understand, I understand everything."
Seeing him like that, Song Jin was too lazy to say anything else and turned to leave. Chunyun's father whispered behind him, "Do you want to have lunch before leaving? I'll ask my wife to cook two more dishes?"
The sound was so soft that it could not be heard after walking a few more steps. Song Jin was too lazy to pay attention to it. He walked straight forward and caught up with the three people.
The old man touched the silver that was gradually warming up in his arms, looked at Chunyun who was being led away, and trotted back to the earthen house.
"Madam, please add some extra food to lunch today."
Song Jin bought Chunyun and felt that a worry had been put to rest. He was happy, but his grip on Chunyun's hand grew heavier.
The little girl walked slower and slower, and her pace became slower and slower.
"What's wrong? Are you unhappy?"
Song Jin pulled Chunyun's arm and pulled her closer.
"Will I be your slave from now on?"
Song Jin smiled and pinched her face: "Not a servant, but a sister."
Chunyun raised her head and said, "Sister?"
"Yes, we will be real sisters from now on."
Chunyun's face instantly broke into a smile, and she cheerfully called out "sister". Song Jin responded loudly, and the two of them skipped and walked on the road as if no one was around. However, the further they walked, the heavier Song Jin's heart became.
Chunyun is protected, but what about her protection? Where is it?
She looked at the sky. It was almost mid-moon. How long would it take for Ji Shubai to come back?
She used to be so disgusted with human trafficking, as she was one of the victims, but now, she is actually doing this kind of thing and using it to protect someone.
The words Ji Shubai said to her at the beginning could not help but come to mind:
"Sometimes... maybe someone will need it."
No wonder Xiren didn't want her family to redeem her and was determined to be Baoyu's concubine.
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